Chapter 13

〈 Chapter 13 〉 Part 1 (12)

The protagonist of the Death Dinassus beneath the Blue Heaven is an extremely heroic figure.

A hero who returned to his homeland to save the world despite being hurt by people and betrayed by his country. Truly, a superhuman worthy of the title ‘Hero.’

Then, what position should I take against such a hero? How must I act from now on to survive?

After three days without sleep, lost in deep thought within the magma, I reached only one conclusion:

“Become trash.”

Act as in the original work, but become a villain even greater than that of the original. This resolve solidified when I realized the current timeline was a full five years ahead of the original.

“Instead of just a factory producing monsters and villains, I’ll lead a true organization of evil.”

To recover the fragments scattered across the world, I need a massive force. Even if Phoenix were powerful enough, it would be impossible for her to fight the entire Earth in terms of time.

“The main stage of Korea’s hidden underworld – a covert villainous organization.”

However, as mentioned earlier, five years isn’t much time.

So I decided.

To truly become a ‘villain.’

In order to survive this hellish world.

By any means necessary, I wanted to survive.

* * *

“Oh my. Why so surprised? Attorney Kim Sang-a is intelligent, so I’ll give you one chance. Normally, if you can’t answer, I’d kill you immediately.”

“Don’t spout nonsense!”

Sang-a screamed at the top of her lungs.

“What? Use that man as my subordinate?! Listen carefully! That’s human trash! A bunch of bastards who drug and rape people, then sell them for profit! If you’ve done anything wrong, you’ll end up like those beasts…!”

“That won’t happen. So, what can you offer me? Oh, since you’re an attorney, should we draft a contract? Would you like to become my subordinate through a contract?”

“…Shut up. Crazy bitch.”

Sang-a cursed venomously while grabbing a small bead from a bundle in the corner and throwing it at Phoenix.

Slip.

The veiled figure caught the bead and slid it onto Phoenix’s palm like a slide down a slide.

“Ah, a monster core?”

“D-Rank. It should be worth about 30 million won.”

Sang-a pointed shakily at Ho-chul with trembling fingers.

“You guys, especially those with special abilities, love this stuff, right? Isn’t it more valuable than that trash? So, use it to kill that guy. Make him suffer the most painful death in the world, as you said.”

“Hmm.”

Phoenix extended the bead towards Ho-chul and asked,

“Do you think your life is worth more than 30 million won?”

“…I don’t know. Fuck. Just kill me already.”

“See! He wants you to kill him too! Kill him!”

Phoenix fiddled with the bead in her hand, leaning against the wall.

“No matter how I think about it, trading one person with special abilities for 30 million won seems like a loss.”

“What?”

Sang-a stared blankly, as if she had lost everything. Phoenix slipped the bead into her school uniform pocket, then moved her hands around before pulling it out again.

“Ta-da! Bead magic. One monster core has instantly turned into four.”

Between each joint of Phoenix’s fingers lay beads, larger and brighter than the one given by Sang-a.

“Would I really need to accept the monster core hidden away by Attorney Kim Sang-a?”

“Well then, what do you want me to do?! This is all I have!”

Sang-a yelled furiously, her bloodshot eyes ready to burst into tears at any moment.

Phoenix wiped away her mischievous smile. Her eyes held genuine sympathy.

“It’s unfortunate that you fail to recognize something far more valuable. Well, there’s nothing I can do.”

With that, Phoenix slipped the monster core back into her pocket and approached Ho-chul, placing a hand on his shoulder.

“How unfortunate. Attorney Kim Sang-a has sold your future for 30 million won.”

Ho-chul remained silent, closing his eyes.

Whoosh.

When Phoenix tapped Ho-chul’s shoulder, blue flames erupted across his entire body.

Crackle.

The flames engulfed Ho-chul’s entire form in an instant. Without any resistance, he collapsed to the floor.

“There. Done. Farewell.”

Phoenix, looking quite relaxed, was about to leave the room when Sang-a rushed forward, turning her around and gripping her shoulder.

“What are you doing?! You said you’d kill him painfully! The most agonizing death in the world!”

“That’s true, but I’m also high-class talent. I gave it my all for what I received. One billion won per second? I burned him for exactly 30 million won.”

“Don’t spout bullshit!!!”

“Oh, really.”

Phoenix pushed Sang-a’s arm aside and placed a hand on her shoulder.

“H-Hiik?!”

Having witnessed firsthand how Ho-chul died, Sang-a trembled violently in fear.

“Why do you keep bothering me like this, Miss Kim Sang-a? …I’m starting to feel like erasing you.”

“…”

Sang-a’s face turned pale. Phoenix tapped her shoulder lightly as if playing piano keys, then smiled again.

“Just kidding. I absolutely wouldn’t ‘needlessly’ kill anyone. So smile! Smile! Why do you look like you’re about to kill someone?”

Sang-a quivered her lips, forcing a crooked smile.

“As if someone who can’t kill people is crazy. Isn’t that what’s happening now? In this modern society of the 21st century, these pieces of trash engage in human trafficking. They deserve to die, don’t they? Right? And since I asked, please answer.”

“Y-Yes! Yes!”

Sang-a nodded vigorously, her chin nearly touching her collarbone. Phoenix laughed while straightening Sang-a’s slightly disheveled clothes.

“Right? Those weren’t even human-like pieces of trash. We cleaned them up for the beautiful and peaceful world that awaits. Love and Peace!”

Phoenix pulled a bead from her pocket and firmly placed it in Sang-a’s hand. It was the D-Rank monster core Sang-a had paid as Ho-chul’s life value.

“So, I won’t accept this. We don’t pay money to clean up trash lying around on the street, right? Right? This is a world where people live.”

Sang-a forced herself to laugh along. She felt something terrible might happen if she didn’t.

“Yes, yes!”

“But listen.”

Phoenix firmly grasped both of Sang-a’s hands.

“If you had hidden this monster core in your bundle and boarded the bus, what do you think would have happened next~?”

“…Wha?!”

Sang-a struggled desperately to free her hands. But the hands captured by Phoenix were as immovable as if caught in a noose.

“Monster cores are delicious prey for other monsters. Consuming a core allows them to absorb its power. Hiding it serves no purpose. Even weak monsters can smell an unshielded core incredibly well. While coming over the airport, countless monsters swarmed towards it.”

Phoenix released her grip. Sang-a, thrown back by the recoil, rolled on the floor, grabbed the bundle, and dashed toward the exit.

Bang! Bang!

The door wouldn’t open. Outside the door, a barrier of blue flames spread.

“A D-Rank monster core, you say? Oh my, if you had carried this onto the bus, some interesting things would have happened on the highway. Didn’t you wrap yourself up tightly to prevent the scent from leaking out? Even if a hero were on board, a swarm of monsters would render everything useless.”

“Aaaaah! Aaaah!”

Step, step. Phoenix stepped over Ho-chul’s corpse and approached Sang-a.

“So here’s the question. Compared to the trash who intended to sell humans, should the person who almost turned all the bus passengers into monster food also be considered disposable trash?”

“Shut up! That kind of thing would never happen!”

“Tsk. There’s no such thing as ‘never’ in this world.”

Phoenix stood right behind Sang-a. Abandoning hope of opening the door handle, Sang-a crawled back to the center of the room.

“Please answer. I’m genuinely curious right now.”

“Screw you! You’re not even human, you bitch!”

“…Hmm.”

What was so funny about that statement? Phoenix suddenly burst into uncontrollable laughter, as if completely mad.

“Hahaha! Haha! C-Crap, not human, huh! Hahaha!”

Clutching her stomach and shaking violently, it was akin to the lunatic scenes one might see in a musical.

An actor submerged in their role, delivering exaggerated emotions through maniacal laughter.

“Haha, hahaha. Hmm….”

After laughing for several seconds, Phoenix gasped for breath. Straightening her posture by holding onto the sofa, she flicked her finger at Sang-a.

“Calling someone not human?”

Snap.

Sang-a was enveloped in blue flames. Flailing her arms in the air, she tried desperately to extinguish the fire, but to no avail.

“Aaaaah….”

Just like everyone else including Ho-chul, Sang-a collapsed, coughing up phlegm as the flames consumed her. The time the flames burned was precisely the same duration as when they had consumed Ho-chul.

“Well then…”

Phoenix picked up the fallen smartphone. Despite the slight scorching at the edge of the case, the smartphone continued recording in video mode.

“Even filming? You really did everything.”

Stopping the video recording, the footage was automatically saved in the gallery. Apart from the recently captured image of Sang-a, numerous photos and videos filled the album.

“Eh.”

Phoenix wrinkled her nose in disgust as she closed the gallery.

‘I should format and delete this when I have time.’

While she couldn’t afford to be mistaken as someone carrying illegal videos, she still needed to use it temporarily until she could properly register a new line in Seoul.

Beep beep beep.

“Huh?”

Checking the warning sound from the smartphone, it indicated the battery was nearly depleted.

“Damn.”

The red battery icon. Phoenix hastily searched near the drawer, found a charger, and connected it to the smartphone.

“One hour for fast charging?”

Phoenix checked the clock that appeared simultaneously. 4:12 PM. Time was slipping away while she needed to head to Seoul as soon as possible.

‘I should have just left without distractions…’

Fiddling with the veil with her fingers, Phoenix debated whether to leave the spot or wait an hour to retrieve the smartphone.

‘…Might as well keep it since I’m bored.’

Considering it as a good opportunity to explore information about this world using data during the journey, Phoenix placed the smartphone on the table and stretched.

“Well, what shall I do for an hour…?”

As Phoenix twirled the veil around her neck and scanned the room, her gaze fell upon Ho-chul’s corpse.

A simple special ability of Body Enhancement but with potential that seemed high. A local villain who never appeared even once in the original story.

What would happen if I turned him into a monster?

“……”

Phoenix quietly retrieved the monster core.

* * *

Deokbae Jo.

The somewhat old-fashioned name was arbitrarily given by his parents.

The result of a one-night stand between a day laborer and a woman who sold water.

His earliest memory from childhood was getting slapped by the orphanage director. Deokbae’s life was nothing short of a tragic existence.

But they say even rats get their day in the sun, don’t they?

On the day Deokbae aged out of the orphanage and wandered the streets, sleeping in a train station, he was taken in by a man named Ho-chul.

Seeing his imposing build, Ho-chul initially intended to entrust him with managing his business operations. Soon, Deokbae began living as Ho-chul’s subordinate.

A turning point arrived in Deokbae’s life.

The awakening of special abilities.

The <Body Enhancement> ability that awakened while fleeing from monsters attacking Yeongjong Island should have been a blessing. But for Deokbae, it became a new chain.

“Hey, thinking of becoming a hero? Stop joking around. If a water seller’s son becomes humanity’s hero, this country is doomed, doomed. Drop the childish dreams and go collect debts instead. Want to find your parents? Then make lots of money first.”

Around the same time, Ho-chul also awakened his own abilities and began expanding his business using Deokbae’s strength. From mere neighborhood muscle, they established themselves in the abandoned areas of Incheon.

Gather as much money as possible before Incheon collapses and move to New Seoul.

And use the accumulated funds as membership fees to join the largest organization in New Seoul, the Villain Union.

Deokbae faithfully followed Ho-chul’s goals. Although he lacked lust for young girls, he gained notoriety in Incheon’s underworld as “Skinhead.”

Recently, as his strength grew, his subordinates began following him, and his relationship with Ho-chul grew distant. Nonetheless, Deokbae managed to accumulate a substantial amount of wealth.

“All of it was meaningless.”

Everything was burned away by an unlucky encounter with a deranged killer. Deokbae’s life was sold for the measly sum of 30 million won.

“At least it’s 30 million won. My life.”

Though one cannot measure a human’s worth in monetary terms, Deokbae couldn’t help but chuckle at realizing his life’s value amounted to exactly that. After all, his life as human trash couldn’t possibly be worth more.

“If I’m reborn, I’ll live a more meaningful life.”

Not necessarily as a rich kid, but in a warm family with loving parents. Having a troublesome younger sister would be nice too.

“But am I really gone?”

Blue flames obscured his vision, accompanied by unbearable pain as consciousness faded. Perhaps this was Deokbae’s 30 million won death.

‘Is this the afterlife then?’

“Jo Deokbae. Jo Deokbae.”

If my name is called three times, will I be dragged to the netherworld? With self-deprecating thoughts, Deokbae responded to the childlike voice calling his name.

“To which hell am I condemned?”

“This is reality, Deokbae.”

A girl with blue hair was smiling brightly. Shocked as if his heart stopped, Deokbae lost consciousness again.

* * *

“…What is this? Why is this kid unconscious again?”

I slapped the unconscious Deokbae’s cheeks. His rock-hard skin clearly wasn’t normal for a human.

‘So it was a Rock Monster.’

I examined the monster core embedded in Deokbae’s heart—left behind by Sang-a. The dull gray core had dyed his entire body rock-like.

‘Should I have just used one from Incheon Airport?’

Every inch of his body was filled with monster cores. The spoils obtained by beating up monsters at Incheon Airport were all at least C-Rank or higher.

‘Actually, D-Ranks were harder to find.’

It emitted just enough B-Rank scent and magic power that A-Rank monsters thought it weaker and attacked, B-Ranks saw it as an equal and attacked, and C-Ranks deemed it worth trying and attacked.

D-Rank and lower monsters seemed scared and hid. Finding them individually was bothersome, so I simply walked to the terminal.

‘My curiosity again.’

They say curiosity killed the cat. Unlike the Western Sea Weapon, this was my second unplanned creation of a monster-human hybrid, and I scratched my cheek.

‘How should I dispose of this?’

There were no division leaders in the original story who turned ‘heroes’ into monster-humans. Since it was supposedly impossible, I tried embedding a core into the corpse out of curiosity, leading to this situation.

‘I didn’t expect it to actually resurrect as a monster-human.’

Should I consider this a monster-human? Or a human? Zombie since it came back to life? Hero-monster? Monster-villain?

‘Don’t know. Let’s just lump it under monster-human.’

Categorizing monster-humans and villains separately is already annoying; creating a new classification is a waste of mental energy. Deciding to leave the definition of “human, hero’s monster-human transformation” to academia someday, I shook Deokbae’s face again.

“Jo Deokbae. Jo Deokbae. Mr. Jo Deokbae?”

There’s no sign of waking up. Guess I’ll just have to wait until the smartphone is fully charged.

If he doesn’t wake up by then, I’ll just kill him again and go.

“99%….”

“Familiar ceiling.”

Deokbae regained consciousness. I marveled at the fate-like timing.

“If it had been 1% later, you’d be dead again.”

“???”

Confusion filled Deokbae’s expression. Clearing my throat, adjusting my throat, I spread my arms and smiled kindly.

“Welcome back to this world. My second servant.”

“…What’s with this sudden, unfitting tone? Are you drunk? You burned someone to death for 30 million won and followed them to the afterlife. Damn crazy bitch.”

Should I kill him? I smacked the insolent subordinate’s head.